Oil on canvas with Arcadic landscape - Veneto 18th century

Refined oil on canvas depicting an Arcadian landscape characterized by ruins, vegetation, and figures rendered with balance and clarity. The composition revolves around the central body of water, which reflects a ruined tower and an arched bridge, an element that guides the viewer’s eye toward the hilltop village in the background. In the foreground, shepherds and animals fording the stream animate the scene with a quiet rhythm, while an elegant tree to one side acts as a theatrical backdrop, structuring the depth of the composition. The iconographic approach recalls both the celebrated model of Marco Ricci—particularly his Campagna romana con rovine e laghetto, housed at the Querini Stampalia Foundation in Venice—and the tradition of the ideal landscape developed by Claude Lorrain, evident in the clarity of the sky, the harmony between nature and architecture, and the composure of the figures. The painting can be attributed to the Venetian area due to its diffused luminosity, the harmonious construction of the landscape, and the characteristic integration of ruins, nature, and small pastoral figures, which are central elements of eighteenth‑century Venetian pictorial tradition. The work, set in a gilded frame, is in excellent condition.